Breaking the Mets’ return package for Steven Matz

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Sean Reid-Foley, Credit: Dan Hamilton-USA TODAY Sports

The Mets were able to breathe some life into their minor league pitching depth on Wednesday night by purchasing a trio of weapons from the Toronto Blue Jays in exchange for Steven matz.

Matz was not guaranteed to be a member of the Opening Day Rotation in 2021, but he also could not be opted for the minor leagues since he has more than five years of service.

With the bullpen virtually settled after the signing of Aaron WolfThe scenarios in which Matz remained with the team throughout spring training were dwindling day by day.

In Sean Reid-Foley and Yennsy Diaz, the Mets have picked up two deep righties who join the roster of 40 players with minor league options usable in 2021. They also acquired Josh winckowski, another right-hander, who is expected to join senior miners this season.

Let’s take a look at each of the last Mets individually.

Sean Reid-Foley

It wasn’t that long ago that Reid-Foley was one of baseball’s top 100 prospects, peaking at no. 75 on Baseball America’s list ahead of the 2017 season.

Born in Guam while his father served in the Coast Guard, Reid-Foley signed for just over $ 1.1 million after the Blue Jays took him to the second round of the 2014 draft.

He hit the majors at the age of 22 in 2018 and has rebounded between Toronto and Triple-A Buffalo ever since. Strictly starting throughout his time with the minors, Reid-Foley stepped out of the bullpen in eight of his 21 appearances in the Big League.

As he climbed into the minor leagues, Reid-Foley was spotted as a guy who could potentially hit 96-97 mph with some consistency. It didn’t necessarily hold up even when working out of the reading pen, with his fastball averaging 94 mph in relief. With an average motion profile too, you just aren’t looking for a faster ball here.

For a pitcher who is set in the 90s, Reid-Foley has been incredibly savage in the big leagues, posting a 23% walk rate in 71.2 innings. His last extended run was in Buffalo in 2019. In 89 innings there, he walked 6.6 out of nine batters.

Reid-Foley’s main speed step is a slider he’s used a third of the time since 2019. He also threw it harder in 2020, averaging 85.9 mph after sitting at 83, 7 in his first two major league seasons.

In a limited sample, the Reid-Foley slider was very effective, showing run values ​​of -4.7 in 2018 and -4.2 in 2020 (on a per 100 launch rate). Simply put, when hitters see a slider at the end of their plate appearance, they see extremely poor results.

Reid-Foley does not have a clear role in the future. The Mets aren’t ready to have an interchangeable pen and at the moment it looks like Joey lucchesi has the advantage over the fifth boot job. Any extra pitching depth on the 40-man roster would only bury Reid-Foley.

As he nears his final year of electing in 2021, he will need to take advantage of every opportunity that will be available to him to prove that he deserves a place on the list going forward.

Josh winckowski

None of these three pitchers stand out from the rest, but Winckowski is in a slightly different class considering he is not on the 40-player roster and has only reached High-A level.

Standing at 6’4 ″, the 2016 draft pick operates from an exaggerated exit point. Primarily a fast slide launcher, Fangraphs notes that he recently added a splitter to his arsenal. They also note that his fastball hit 97 mph, although that appears to be more of a reading from the bullpen of the readings than a constant event in his starts.

Statistically, Winckowski generated strong results as a pro, but didn’t release the withdrawal numbers you would see from dominant prospects. However, he was not burned by walks or circuits. All in all, that sounds like a no. Starting profile 4-5 with a multi-round relief role not off the table.

Winckowski was not selected in the Rule 5 draft in December, which likely meant teams were unsure of the state of his development after the lost season (he was not at the site of alternative training of the Blue Jays). Although Double-A Binghamton is the next step in his natural progression, a strong performance in spring training could see him push for a berth in the Triple-A Syracuse roster.

Credit: Douglas DeFelice-USA TODAY Sports

Yennsy Diaz

Díaz was another big amateur signing by the Blue Jays in 2014, bringing in a bonus of $ 1.6 million. Much like Reid-Foley, Díaz had little problem climbing the minor league ranks and made his major league debut in 2019 at the age of 22.

Unfortunately for Díaz, that seven-hitter, four-step, two-point performance out of the relieving box has been the measure of his time in the major league so far. He suffered from a strained lateral muscle in spring training last year and only returned to the mound this winter in the Dominican Republic.

Although almost all of his professional experience has come as a beginner, Díaz is currently projecting himself as a low leverage lifter. Both Fangraphs and MLB Pipeline rate his mid-90s fastball as his only positive ground.

His offspeed command (seen above; he’s throwing a medium change as well) will make the difference between whether he’s a contributor or a quick dropped 40 man (he has two options left and has picked up a full year of time service on the injured. list in 2020).

The Mets have done pretty well here. Matz had little to no business value, and if he ends up providing the Blue Jays with solid value, they will have to compete to keep his services on the open market next winter.

In return, New York received a trio of weapons that are far from flashy but continue to deepen the organization’s pipeline.



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